The true protagonist of this chapter was neither Tanjiro nor Inosuke.
No
It was the infamous Hand Demon itself.
Deep within the forests of Mount Fujikasane, the grotesque demon finally revealed itself after patiently waiting for the perfect opportunity.
Inosuke had fallen asleep from exhaustion.
Tanjiro was barely conscious after staying awake for so long.
Zenitsu was already snoring loudly beside them.
To the Hand Demon, this was the ideal moment to strike.
A massive shadow suddenly lunged from the darkness.
At the exact same instant, Tanjiro's eyes snapped open.
A revolting stench flooded his senses.
Without even thinking, he grabbed his Nichirin Blade and slashed upward instinctively.
"Inosuke! Zenitsu! Wake up!"
Before the others could even react, countless enormous arms burst from the darkness like writhing snakes.
The sight was horrifying.
Dozens upon dozens of muscular hands stretched unnaturally through the trees, twisting and extending like rubber.
Tanjiro immediately realized this demon was far stronger than the others they had encountered so far.
There was no time to hesitate.
\text{Water Breathing First Form: Water Surface Slash}
A clean arc of water-like motion severed one of the massive arms reaching toward Zenitsu and Inosuke.
Tanjiro immediately rushed forward
But the Hand Demon counterattacked instantly.
A gigantic fist smashed directly into Tanjiro's chest.
Boom!
Tanjiro was blasted backward like a ragdoll, crashing violently into a tree hard enough to snap it in half.
"Gah !"
Blood sprayed from his mouth as pain surged through his entire body.
His internal organs trembled violently from the impact.
Even so, Tanjiro gritted his teeth, planted his sword into the earth, and forced himself back to his feet.
The Hand Demon stared at him with its many grotesque eyes before suddenly laughing hysterically.
"Hehehehehe… little fox mask brat…"
Its enormous hands covered its face while it giggled in a disturbingly childish manner.
"Tell me…"
"What era is it now?"
Tanjiro froze briefly at the strange question.
Still gripping his sword tightly with both hands, he answered cautiously.
"It's the Taisho Era."
"…Taisho?"
The Hand Demon went completely still.
Then suddenly
It exploded into madness.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
Its giant hands clawed frantically at its own flesh, tearing bloody wounds across its body while stomping violently against the ground.
"The era changed again?!"
"While I was trapped here, the outside world changed again?!"
"Damn you, Urokodaki!"
"Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!"
The Hand Demon's voice echoed through the forest like a curse.
Tanjiro's expression changed instantly.
"You know Urokodaki-sensei?"
The demon's twisted eyes locked onto him immediately.
"Of course I know him…"
Its smile became hideous.
"Because Sakonji Urokodaki was the one who captured me!"
"Forty-seven years ago… back in the late Edo Period…"
Before the demon could continue speaking
A pair of jagged Nichirin Blades suddenly tore through the air.
"Shut up already! You're annoying!"
Inosuke had awakened.
Apparently, being rudely interrupted during sleep had infuriated him beyond reason.
The Mountain King charged forward wildly, dual blades spinning like fangs.
The Hand Demon looked surprised.
"Oh? Pighead's awake?"
However, it still did not view Inosuke as a serious threat.
After all, Inosuke had barely eaten during the past two days.
His stamina should have been nearly depleted.
Unfortunately
The demon underestimated him.
\text{Beast Breathing Second Fang: Slice}
Inosuke's twin blades carved violently across the Hand Demon's body.
Sparks flew.
Although the attack failed to sever its neck, several thick arms were sliced apart instantly.
The Hand Demon hissed angrily.
"This brat fights like a wild animal!"
Meanwhile, Tanjiro's focus remained elsewhere.
His expression gradually darkened.
"You recognized my fox mask…"
The Hand Demon suddenly grinned wickedly.
"Of course."
"Only Urokodaki's disciples wear masks like that."
Its laughter became increasingly twisted.
"There were two especially memorable ones…"
"Sabito."
"Makomo."
The moment those names left its mouth, Tanjiro's eyes widened.
Then the demon proudly confessed everything.
How it had devoured Urokodaki's disciples over the decades.
How it specifically targeted children wearing fox masks.
How it remembered the fear and despair in their faces.
And worst of all
The Hand Demon felt absolutely no remorse.
To it, humans were nothing more than food.
Would a human count how many bowls of rice they had eaten in their lifetime?
As Tanjiro listened, fury gradually filled his chest.
His hands trembled.
"Sabito…"
"Makomo…"
The memories of their smiles flashed through his mind.
A fierce determination ignited within him.
"I'll avenge them!"
Tanjiro and Inosuke attacked simultaneously once more.
Unfortunately, both boys had already reached their physical limits.
Inosuke's movements were slowing due to hunger.
Tanjiro's injuries were steadily worsening.
The Hand Demon easily knocked them aside again with overwhelming physical strength.
Massive arms crashed through the forest like battering rams.
Tanjiro barely managed to avoid being crushed.
Inosuke rolled violently across the ground before slamming into a tree trunk.
"Hehehehe…"
The Hand Demon laughed arrogantly while staring at the exhausted boys.
"You two are finished now, aren't you?"
"In that case…"
"I'll eat the blond brat first."
Meanwhile, Zenitsu was somehow still asleep.
The Hand Demon gathered power into one enormous fist before swinging directly toward the unconscious boy.
Tanjiro desperately tried to move.
But his battered body would no longer obey him.
"No !"
Boom!
The gigantic fist slammed into the ground where Zenitsu had been sleeping, sending dirt and smoke exploding into the air.
The Hand Demon immediately leaned forward eagerly
Only to freeze.
Zenitsu was gone.
"Zenitsu?!"
Tanjiro looked upward in shock.
Zenitsu now stood atop a nearby tree branch.
However, his eyes remained closed.
He was still asleep.
The Hand Demon became furious.
"You brat! You dodged?!"
Dozens of giant hands shot upward toward Zenitsu like spears.
Then
A flash of lightning erupted through the forest.
Zenitsu's breathing changed instantly.
Air compressed deep within his lungs.
Electricity crackled around his body.
And in the next instant
He vanished.
\text{Thunder Breathing First Form: Thunderclap and Flash Sixfold}
Thunder exploded across the mountain.
Zenitsu moved so quickly that even Tanjiro could barely follow him.
One flash.
Two flashes.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six.
Golden lightning tore through the forest repeatedly as Zenitsu completed six consecutive strikes in an instant before reappearing directly before the Hand Demon.
The demon's eyes widened in horror.
"What ?!"
Even asleep, Zenitsu radiated terrifying speed.
For the first time since appearing, the Hand Demon truly felt fear.
In a battle against all three boys simultaneously, it no longer had any confidence in victory.
Its survival instincts immediately took over.
The Hand Demon turned and fled.
"Stop!"
Tanjiro forced himself upright despite the pain tearing through his body.
He could not allow this demon to escape.
If it survived, future Final Selection participants would suffer the same fate as Sabito and Makomo.
Tanjiro steadied his breathing.
Then he saw it
The thread.
The opening line connecting directly to the demon's neck.
Tanjiro's eyes sharpened.
\text{Water Breathing Second Form: Water Wheel}
Tanjiro leapt spinning through the air like a wheel of flowing water.
His blade cleanly severed the Hand Demon's neck.
For a moment, the demon stared blankly as its head separated from its body.
"I… was beheaded…?"
But even then, it refused to die quietly.
Its remaining arms launched one final desperate attack toward Tanjiro.
Tanjiro's exhausted body could no longer dodge.
He instinctively closed his eyes.
Then
"Inosuke's here!"
A wild figure suddenly charged forward.
Inosuke's blades hacked apart the incoming arms before they could reach Tanjiro.
The remaining fist harmlessly bonked Tanjiro directly on the forehead.
Thus
Tanjiro survived completely unharmed.
And so, the terrifying Hand Demon finally disintegrated into ash beneath the moonlight.
With the danger finally over, Tanjiro and Inosuke collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.
Meanwhile, Zenitsu remained standing nearby
Still asleep.
Thus, the three boys successfully survived Final Selection together.
The following morning, the surviving participants descended Mount Fujikasane.
Out of everyone who had entered the mountain, only five remained alive.
Besides Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke, the survivors included the quiet side-ponytailed girl, Kanao Tsuyuri, as well as a sharp-eyed boy with a distinctive mohawk hairstyle named Genya Shinazugawa.
Afterward, the new Demon Slayers selected ore for their future Nichirin Blades.
During the process, however, Genya suddenly grabbed one of the young attendants by the hair while demanding answers aggressively.
The white-haired child he grabbed was one of the Ubuyashiki children.
Naturally
Inosuke and Tanjiro immediately stepped in.
Together, the two of them beat Genya into the dirt.
Only after several attendants intervened did the situation finally calm down.
Soon afterward, each successful participant received their own Kasugai Crow.
Well…
Almost everyone.
Zenitsu, for some mysterious reason, received a sparrow instead.
The tiny bird chirped energetically.
Its name was Chuntaro.
And finally, with nowhere else to go afterward, Inosuke immediately declared that he would accompany Tanjiro home.
Tanjiro, naturally, did not refuse.
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